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Topic: Pearls from the bhAgavatA (Read 25995 times)

The first stage is that of pious householders following the Spiritual injunctions.It consists in performance of prescribed ordained duties, in works of charity, in study of the scriptures and reflection on their meaning, in practicing control of the mind and the senses, and in the discharge of one'sduties as an offering to God.

The second stage is that of those who follow a way of life that combines both Pravritti (Secular life characterized by works) and Nivritti (exclusively spiritual pursuits). They follow the specific ninefield disciplines of Bhakti supported by disciplines of work and concentration.

The third is that of advanced spiritual aspirants who have intense dispassion for self-centered life and devote themselves exclusively to the realisation ofthe Atman. It is the Bhagavan, the supreme principle of Self-Awareness, who is both Saguna (associated with Gunas) and Nirguna(without associated with Gunas).

By an unbroken flow of love towards Him, by the practice of intense dispassion, by the observance of strict discipline in eating and other matters of daily life, by acquiring knowledge on spiritual matters; by the experience of the All-inclusive Being with its veil of Maya, which is removed by constant contemplation of Him with a pure mind; by the elimination of individuality that is attained through the fixing of the mind on Bhagavan, who is none else but Brahman and who is the support of the Jiva - by means of such disciplines she (Devahuti) attained to Supreme peace, having removed all the obstacles to the dawn of this Knowledge.

Great men show extreme tolerance and never an attitude of vengeance, towards the mistakes committed by person whose minds have been stricken by the Lord's Maya with a divisive outlook and the infatuation arising from it.

You are not affected by the Lord's mysterious power of Maya, and are all-knowing. So, O Lord, it behoves you to bless those on whom the infatuation of Maya acts and whose thoughts are guided by the tendencies of the Karma they have acquired in the past.

The Atman is different from the body. For the Atman is one, pure, self-conscious, non-material, the ground of matter and its modifications, the all-pervading, without any covering, the witness, and the selfless Self.

He who understands this Atman to be the Essence in himself, does not become attached to the modification called matter, though he may dwell in the physical body, for he is established in Me.

O Lord! The whole world is stricken by Thy Maya. Else why should all stupidly run after petty enjoyments, rejecting Thee, the essence of Truth? Just as a father protects a son unasked, it is meet that Thou dost protect us, as Thou alone knowest what is good for us.